Thursday, May 26, 2011

'Pura Vida' is as much Costa Rica as Costa Rica is 'Pura Vida'. You can't really mention one without mentioning the other. Try to talk about 'love' without mentioning 'heart', it's kinda like that.

Costa Ricans are proud of their 'Pura Vida' heritage, as well they should be, after all, 'Pura Vida' literally means 'Pure Life', so it doesn't get any more apple pie than that. And they pride themselves on living as such- pure, simple, happy, calm, peaceful, etc. I'm sure you get the picture.

Live here in Costa Rica and you'll hear 'Pura Vida' uttered about a thousand times a day, everyday. 'Pura Vida' this and 'Pura Vida' that. 'Pura Vida' is mostly used for greeting/departing others and statements of 'understanding'. For example:

"Damn, did you hear about that dog getting run over,,,it was so sad?"

"Pura Vida."

Unfortunately, 'Pura Vida' has other connotations as well, not so 'positive and pleasant' connotations at that, at least in my mind. I'll let my video explain it-

Monday, May 23, 2011

*First off, judging by some of the emails I receive, I think we may have a little misunderstanding. Let me explain. When I talk to an expat living in Costa Rica, we are merely discussing their experiences. That's it. This isn't hard hitting '60 Minutes' type reporting with facts and figures (which can often be misleading), these are real-life people like you and me who have decided to make Costa Rica their home. Their perspective, their opinion based on THEIR experience and observation. If you don't agree with what's being said, fine, just comment, give some feedback or better yet, ask me to interview YOU. Don't email me what's being said is 'wrong'. Unless of course the person talking has their 'facts' wrong. But don't YELL at me, I'm sensitive....hehe.

In the below video we're discussing a few of the concerns one should consider when dating or having a relationship with a local Tico. This is Williams perspective.

*Although this discussion has nothing to do with 'prostitution', I have a feeling some will find this page in hopes that is exactly what we're discussing. So, for shits and giggles, I decided to also embed that video as well.

Thursday, May 19, 2011

Here's how to travel to Costa Rica and survive crime, theft, murder and overall mayhem. You know, because it's around every corner.

So this dude from Connecticut, Howard Daniels Jr. writes an editorial to A.M.Costa Rica (Your daily English-language news source Monday through Friday'....whatever) and gives his take on why tourism is down in Costa Rica. His reasons, here's the exact quote:

"The reason that North Americans are not going to Costa Rica as much anymore is twofold. #1 crime and #2 tired of dealing with bribe dealing police."

This subject is a pet peeve of mine and I've written about it numerous times. So, I'll let the VIDEOS BELOW do most of the talking. But here's my bottom line: I would say that 98.9% of the BAD things that happen to tourists while in Costa Rica are a direct result of their STUPIDITY when traveling abroad. #2- Their are exceptions but 99% of the time, if you're bribing a police officer, it's because you got caught breaking the law and with some of the fines here, you'll hope the cop is 'corrupt'. However, they have been known to 'shakedown' tourists on occasion as well, but this is more the exception than the rule and don't forget, you do have recourse when a bad cop tries to pull a fast one.

Lastly, only the worst of the worst stories get printed, so perception and drama RULES on the internet. If tourists weren't so STUPID, crime against them wouldn't be so high. Yeah, I said it.*Living here is an entirely different matter.

If you are traveling to Costa Rica, watch all the videos below from beginning to end and I can assure you, your risk factor will be cut to about '0'. I have much more INFO about crime and it's effect on tourism in this blog but don't stop there, visit other sites and get more perspective as well.

Tuesday, May 10, 2011

Princesa de la Luna is an Eco Lodge about 12 minutes from the center of La Fortuna and sits on 25 acres of rain forest. It has about 6 miles of hiking trails, a natural 'river pool' and what seems like 20,000 different varieties of Costa Rican fruit trees. We've lived in La Fortuna for almost 6 years and had never been to Princesa de la Luna but finally, we recently got the chance.

We did a video of Princesa de la Luna and I'll post it in the next couple of days... this is just a 'teaser' post, complete with a few pics of Princesa de la Luna.

Sunday, May 8, 2011

Villa Decary is about 45 minutes from La Fortuna Costa Rica and just a mile or so from Nuevo Arenal. One of the views from Villa Decary of Lake Arenal.

Villa Decary describes itself as a country inn but it also has a bed & breakfast feel to it as well. It overlooks Lake Arenal and sits on a beautiful piece of property complete with primary rain forest, howler monkey's and about a zillion different types of birds. Villa Decary is the perfect setting to experience what Costa Rica really is all about.

As I mentioned, Villa Decary is about 45 minutes from La Fortuna and many people who stay there venture into Fortuna after breakfast, take in an adventure tour or volcano hike and head back to the hotel around dinner time. That's not to say there isn't plenty of things to do around the Nuevo Arenal area. HELLO... the lake is just outside the door. So, if you like the water, there's plenty of activities to do such as boating, fishing, boogie boarding, wind surfing (Lake Arenal is world renowned for its wind surfing)kayaking etc. There's also hiking and horseback riding in the area.

And you wouldn't want to miss eating at one of the BEST restaurants in all of Costa Rica, The Gingerbread, which is only about a 4-minute walk from Villa Decary. Really, the best food we've ever had since living in Costa Rica.

People that stay at Villa Decary are the type of people who want to fall asleep with nature and not Jay Leno. And really, that's what Costa Rica is all about.

Saturday, May 7, 2011

Loneliness in a foreign country can definitely cause some serious depression and at the least, a BIG dose of, "What the fuck am I doing here?"

I've seen it too many times, folks coming here (usually older folks) thinking they're going to live in 'paradise' while writing the next great American novel, after all, it does sound very romantic when you say it. Like I mentioned, it's usually older, retired folks who arrive in Costa Rica ready to fill their days doing what they always said they wanted to do but finding out the reality of the dream is much harsher than the dream itself.

My friend Bill has found his passion after retirement and practices it everyday.

The folks that come here with a plan or are starting a business usually end up leaving Costa Rica for other reasons. Running a business in Costa Rica is a day in and day out distraction and leaves little time for thinking of much else. If these people pack it up and go home, it's usually because they underestimated the time and money it takes to create a successful business- it's rarely a 'boredom' thing.

Here's a little VIDEO I did about 'Boredom in Paradise',,,with a little help from one of my expat friends, Bill, who has successfully made the move to Costa Rica after retiring and found... and FOLLOWED his passion.

Monday, May 2, 2011

William is like no other person I've talked to in our Expat Series. He basically came down to Costa Rica on a whim and ended up staying. I like him. He doesn't pull any punches when discussing some of the not so pleasant things about Costa Rica. Many people I speak with like to gloss over these not so pleasant things and push the idea that living in Costa Rica is pure paradise. Will is definitely a breath of fresh air, for me at least.

If you're thinking about relocating to Costa Rica, then you don't want to miss Will's perspective. Check it out.

Here's a couple other videos you might want to also consider if you haven't seen them yet. In the first one, I discuss 'Culture Shock' and it's definitely a must see. The second one is about things to consider when deciding 'Where to Live' in Costa Rica. ENjoY!